I am much amused...and bemused.

So LJ is going to be managed by a Russian company. Wait - watch me show my age again.

Lessee. Let's assume for the moment the average age of an LJ user is around 23. Just - hang with me a moment.

When I was 23 - that would be 1984. The wall had not come down yet, we had Reagan in office with his finger on The Button, we were warned not to watch "The Day After" alone, and "Testament" was in the theaters.

I tried to take Russian as a foreign language, and was refused because the only time I could get it in, only the intermediate classes were available - one, mind, ONE - and I was scrutinized VERY closely. Why do you want to learn RUSSIAN, hmmmmmm?

Seriously. No, way. Very much way, dude. I could learn all the French I wanted. Spanish, natch. German...still got some strange looks, but okay. Itallian? Oh, that. Well, maybe. Hebrew? You're not Jewish. You don't need that. And English got a lot more attention - you actually had to be able to read and write it legitimately, or they flunked you.

(Really need a memory jog? Go listen to this again.)

1984.

I was still buying music on vinyl records then. I picked up a Genesis collection over the weekend, and listening to it I was remembering how many of the cuts I'd actually bought as 45 rpm vinyl. (I probably still have them, too.)

Wasn't that long ago. Except that if you were born that year, you're legal to drink already. Whee.

The fact that this lovely bastion of "I WANNA ROCK" is going to be managed by the people I knew the least about, when I was the age of the average user today - is ironic in the extreme.

Cliff would be delighted to see what his beloved Yeltsin has wrought.

I am much amused...and bemused.

So LJ is going to be managed by a Russian company. Wait - watch me show my age again.

Lessee. Let's assume for the moment the average age of an LJ user is around 23. Just - hang with me a moment.

When I was 23 - that would be 1984. The wall had not come down yet, we had Reagan in office with his finger on The Button, we were warned not to watch "The Day After" alone, and "Testament" was in the theaters.

I tried to take Russian as a foreign language, and was refused because the only time I could get it in, only the intermediate classes were available - one, mind, ONE - and I was scrutinized VERY closely. Why do you want to learn RUSSIAN, hmmmmmm?

Seriously. No, way. Very much way, dude. I could learn all the French I wanted. Spanish, natch. German...still got some strange looks, but okay. Itallian? Oh, that. Well, maybe. Hebrew? You're not Jewish. You don't need that. And English got a lot more attention - you actually had to be able to read and write it legitimately, or they flunked you.

(Really need a memory jog? Go listen to this again.)

1984.

I was still buying music on vinyl records then. I picked up a Genesis collection over the weekend, and listening to it I was remembering how many of the cuts I'd actually bought as 45 rpm vinyl. (I probably still have them, too.)

Wasn't that long ago. Except that if you were born that year, you're legal to drink already. Whee.

The fact that this lovely bastion of "I WANNA ROCK" is going to be managed by the people I knew the least about, when I was the age of the average user today - is ironic in the extreme.

Cliff would be delighted to see what his beloved Yeltsin has wrought.

I am much amused...and bemused.

So LJ is going to be managed by a Russian company. Wait - watch me show my age again.

Lessee. Let's assume for the moment the average age of an LJ user is around 23. Just - hang with me a moment.

When I was 23 - that would be 1984. The wall had not come down yet, we had Reagan in office with his finger on The Button, we were warned not to watch "The Day After" alone, and "Testament" was in the theaters.

I tried to take Russian as a foreign language, and was refused because the only time I could get it in, only the intermediate classes were available - one, mind, ONE - and I was scrutinized VERY closely. Why do you want to learn RUSSIAN, hmmmmmm?

Seriously. No, way. Very much way, dude. I could learn all the French I wanted. Spanish, natch. German...still got some strange looks, but okay. Itallian? Oh, that. Well, maybe. Hebrew? You're not Jewish. You don't need that. And English got a lot more attention - you actually had to be able to read and write it legitimately, or they flunked you.

(Really need a memory jog? Go listen to this again.)

1984.

I was still buying music on vinyl records then. I picked up a Genesis collection over the weekend, and listening to it I was remembering how many of the cuts I'd actually bought as 45 rpm vinyl. (I probably still have them, too.)

Wasn't that long ago. Except that if you were born that year, you're legal to drink already. Whee.

The fact that this lovely bastion of "I WANNA ROCK" is going to be managed by the people I knew the least about, when I was the age of the average user today - is ironic in the extreme.

Cliff would be delighted to see what his beloved Yeltsin has wrought.

It's time for the update -

Lovely Ladies on Beautiful Bikes

( Click here to see! )

A couple of changes - my lightning rod has moved to Boston from San Jose. Also, I have an explanation of how this works over at http://community.livejournal.com/weblogsociology/1788.html if you are so inclined.

It's time for the update -

Lovely Ladies on Beautiful Bikes

( Click here to see! )

A couple of changes - my lightning rod has moved to Boston from San Jose. Also, I have an explanation of how this works over at http://community.livejournal.com/weblogsociology/1788.html if you are so inclined.

It's time for the update -

Lovely Ladies on Beautiful Bikes

( Click here to see! )

A couple of changes - my lightning rod has moved to Boston from San Jose. Also, I have an explanation of how this works over at http://community.livejournal.com/weblogsociology/1788.html if you are so inclined.

And get this -

Banas said based on additional interviews, the fake MySpace page was not created by the mother of one of Megan's friends. He said the page was created by the 18-year-old employee, though the mother and her 13-year-old daughter knew about the page. He said he was unable to speak directly with the 18-year-old, whom he said has been hospitalized for psychiatric treatment.

Emphasis mine.

Guys, no justice. No real change. No probation. No parenting classes. No nothing.

Just vigilantism as a last resort - and more stupidity heading for a legislature near you.

It's hard to put words to, but the ones that float to the surface first only say that it is DAMN easy for one person to take one action to make a whole LOT of people miserable.

Always do your best.
Clean up your own messes.
And be aware of your influence on others. (Applying the Golden Rule after this is easy. It just makes perfect sense, once you realize you're not the only oyster in the stew, neh?)

In the end, it was her life to manage...keep or discard, as she saw fit.

But also - anyone who wishes to take their own life is probably not dealing with what is. Just a terrible version of it.

And get this -

Banas said based on additional interviews, the fake MySpace page was not created by the mother of one of Megan's friends. He said the page was created by the 18-year-old employee, though the mother and her 13-year-old daughter knew about the page. He said he was unable to speak directly with the 18-year-old, whom he said has been hospitalized for psychiatric treatment.

Emphasis mine.

Guys, no justice. No real change. No probation. No parenting classes. No nothing.

Just vigilantism as a last resort - and more stupidity heading for a legislature near you.

It's hard to put words to, but the ones that float to the surface first only say that it is DAMN easy for one person to take one action to make a whole LOT of people miserable.

Always do your best.
Clean up your own messes.
And be aware of your influence on others. (Applying the Golden Rule after this is easy. It just makes perfect sense, once you realize you're not the only oyster in the stew, neh?)

In the end, it was her life to manage...keep or discard, as she saw fit.

But also - anyone who wishes to take their own life is probably not dealing with what is. Just a terrible version of it.

And get this -

Banas said based on additional interviews, the fake MySpace page was not created by the mother of one of Megan's friends. He said the page was created by the 18-year-old employee, though the mother and her 13-year-old daughter knew about the page. He said he was unable to speak directly with the 18-year-old, whom he said has been hospitalized for psychiatric treatment.

Emphasis mine.

Guys, no justice. No real change. No probation. No parenting classes. No nothing.

Just vigilantism as a last resort - and more stupidity heading for a legislature near you.

It's hard to put words to, but the ones that float to the surface first only say that it is DAMN easy for one person to take one action to make a whole LOT of people miserable.

Always do your best.
Clean up your own messes.
And be aware of your influence on others. (Applying the Golden Rule after this is easy. It just makes perfect sense, once you realize you're not the only oyster in the stew, neh?)

In the end, it was her life to manage...keep or discard, as she saw fit.

But also - anyone who wishes to take their own life is probably not dealing with what is. Just a terrible version of it.

Advent, Day 3

Today's music offering is one that I found last year - something old, but offbeat.

Duke Ellington - 'Jingle Bells'

And the recipe? From one of my favorite cooking sites, Epicurious.com:

Sweet Rice-Flour And Coconut Cake

(What? You wanted something red or green, maybe?)

See you tomorrow!

Advent, Day 3

Today's music offering is one that I found last year - something old, but offbeat.

Duke Ellington - 'Jingle Bells'

And the recipe? From one of my favorite cooking sites, Epicurious.com:

Sweet Rice-Flour And Coconut Cake

(What? You wanted something red or green, maybe?)

See you tomorrow!

Advent, Day 3

Today's music offering is one that I found last year - something old, but offbeat.

Duke Ellington - 'Jingle Bells'

And the recipe? From one of my favorite cooking sites, Epicurious.com:

Sweet Rice-Flour And Coconut Cake

(What? You wanted something red or green, maybe?)

See you tomorrow!